A standard felt-tipped fluorescent highlighter is commonly used to accentuate text or other printed images in letters, reports, books, etc. In its brightly colored, semi-translucent state it is effective in drawing one's attention to a particular area of a page. However, this translucency also limits a highlighters' usefulness as it cannot be `seen` by the optics of a photocopier and thereby cannot be consistently reproduced. In addition, facsimile technology cannot distinguish standard highlighter markings and thus cannot transmit the highlighted background.
According to the present invention, a method, product, and apparatus are provided for effecting highlighting of text, symbols, or the like in documents so that the highlighting reproduces when the document is reproduced electronically (e.g. by photocopying or by facsimile transmission), while not adversely the text after it has been reproduced. This is effectively provided for according to the present invention--in general--by providing a background tone to the text to be highlighted. A background "tone" is typically produced by screening utilizing either a dot screen or a line screen. It is most desirable according to the invention to utilize a tone produced from a dot screen where the dots are small enough and close enough in proximity to one another to appear as a continuous gray tone. The tone is of sufficient density to effectively highlight the text, but does not impair the legibility of the underlined text/symbols. It is most desirable to provide a tone of about 10-22% density (e.g. approximately 20% density), with about 30-65 lines per inch. Such a tone will adequately highlight the text on documents, while being reproduceable utilizing a photocopier or a facsimile transmission, without the highlighted information being obscured.
According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of marking documents so as to highlight word and/or symbol areas thereof in such a way that the highlighting is reproduced when the document is electronically copied. The method comprises the steps of: (a) Applying a tone to only that area of the document to be copied so that the tone remains in place during copying, the tone having sufficient characteristics so that it clearly highlights the portions of the document to which it is applied while the words or symbols to which it is applied are clearly legible. And, (b) electronically copying the document so that the areas to which the tone was applied are highlighted on the copy, yet the words and/or symbols associated therewith are clearly legible. Step (b) may be preferably practiced by photocopying or by facsimile transmission. Step (a) may be practiced in a number of different ways.
One way of practicing step (a) is to provide the tone on a piece of adhesive tape, and applying the tape to the area to be highlighted. The tape may be a roll in a dispenser and the applying step is practiced by dispensing the tape from the dispenser onto the document. The tape may be perforated at predetermined spaced points along its length in the roll, and after the necessary length is determined the tape may be separated at the closest perforation to the desired length.
Alternatively, the applying step may be practiced by applying ink directly to the document to be highlighted, such as by utilizing an ink applicator roller which has the tone pattern thereon and is mounted in a housing for rotation about a horizontal axis. The ink applicator roller has another roller that it is in contact with, which in turn is in contact with a supply of ink so that ink is supplied to the applicator roller.
In yet another alternative, the tone may be provided on a transfer sheet and the transfer sheet may be applied over the document to be highlighted. By rubbing on the transfer sheet at the area of the transfer, it is-applied to the document. The transfer sheet preferably has a plurality of quadrate spaced rows and columns of tone at least some of which have a height dimension about the height of a line of type in the document.
According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a tape for highlighting a document. The tape comprises an elongated substrate of transparent material with adhesive on one face thereof and a tone applied thereto. The width of the tape is preferably one-sixth of an inch, or an even (i.e. integer) multiple of about one-sixth of an inch so that it will cover one or more lines of type (standard type being about one-sixth inch in height).
According to yet another aspect of the present invention there is provided an adhesive tape dispenser, such as for dispensing the highlighting tape described above. The dispenser comprises the following elements: (a) An elongated housing. (b) Means for mounting a roll of adhesive tape in the housing about an axis generally perpendicular to the dimension of elongation of the housing. (c) Means defining a tape dispensing opening in the housing remote from the means (b). (d) Means defining a tape guide inside the housing from the means (b) to (c). (e) Roller means for advancing tape from the means (b) to the means (c) along the means (d), the roller means including a driving roller. (f) Means for effecting rotation of the driving roller. (g) Tape severing means adjacent the means (c). And, (h), means for effecting operation of the means (g).
It is the primary object of the present invention to provide a method, and devices, for effecting highlighting of documents so that the highlighted portions will reproduce when the document is electronically copied, but will not obscure the portions they highlight. This and other objects of the invention will become clear from an inspection of the detailed description of the invention and from the appended claims.